Cameron Russell

Have you ever woken up in the morning, looked at your crazy bedhead, and wished you were a prettier, sexier version of yourself? The idea that external beauty will make a person happy is nearly universally accepted as truth, but in her TED Talk from TEDxMidAtlantic in 2012, activist and Victoria’s Secret model Cameron Russell takes the other side of the argument. She frankly admits that she won “the genetic lottery,” benefitting from a culture biased to value beautiful, young, slender, white women, and also draws attention to the ways physical appearance negatively impacts the lives of non-white people every day. It’s one of the most popular TED Talks of all time for Russell’s startling honesty and her ability to…